Author: Charles Frank

High-functioning alcoholic Wikipedia

Relating to other people with substance abuse issues may help someone break through denial and begin to recover. But they may put themselves or others in danger by drinking and driving, having risky sexual encounters, or blacking out, Benton says. Many are not viewed by society as being alcoholic, because they have functioned, succeeded and/or over-achieved throughout their lifetimes. These achievements often lead to an increase in personal denial as well as denial from colleagues and loved ones.

There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. In addition, since the impact of AUD may not be as obvious, the person may be unable to recognize the severity of their condition in these early stages. However, there are individuals that meet the criteria for AUD but do not experience these impacts.

Typical Stages of High-Functioning Alcoholism

This means the negative impact on your life will likely grow, and the condition will not get better on its own without treatment. For example, you might imagine an “alcoholic” as someone who is constantly near-blackout drunk, and someone who’s unable to maintain a job or family life. The National Institute of Health suggests that loved ones should start by talking about their concerns. Instead, voice your concerns, share how their drinking is affecting others, and suggest ways that you can help them talk to a doctor or join a support group. If you are concerned about your loved one’s drinking, it can be helpful to join a support group such as Al-Anon. Such groups can offer valuable support, encouragement, advice, and information.

Binge drinking, social pressures, family history, mental health issues, and excess alcohol use can all increase your risk of developing an alcohol use disorder. We publish material that is researched, cited, edited and reviewed by licensed medical professionals. The information we provide is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

1. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare providers.
2. Even though they may want to stop, many functioning alcoholics often won’t know where or how to begin the process.
3. If the consequences of high-functioning alcoholism have become overwhelming, and your loved one refuses to seek help for alcohol abuse, it could be time to plan an intervention.
4. Such groups can offer valuable support, encouragement, advice, and information.

It can also ultimately lead to relationship difficulties as well as legal and financial problems. If needed, your doctor may also order blood tests to check your liver function. There are no official diagnostic criteria for what it means to be high functioning. For this reason, it is hard to determine exactly how many people might have high-functioning AUD. However, certain food groups also have benefits when it comes to helping with the discomfort of withdrawal symptoms and detoxification.

How to help a person with AUD?

Daily drinking can have serious consequences for a person’s health, both in the short- and long-term. Many of the effects of drinking every day can be reversed through early intervention. Typically, alcohol withdrawal symptoms happen for heavier drinkers. Alcohol withdrawal can begin within hours of ending a drinking session. Although an intervention can take many forms, many of these meetings open with each participant stating how the alcoholic’s behavior has harmed or disappointed them.

The alcoholic is then presented with a plan of care, including a proposal of consequences if they decide to refuse. For instance, the alcoholic may be denied visitation rights or may be faced with a marital separation if he decides not to seek help. An alcoholic in denial may become extremely manipulative, tearful, angry or hostile when faced with the need for alcohol treatment.

If someone close to you is a high-functioning alcoholic, it’s just as important to seek support for yourself as it is to get help for your loved one. You likely have questions about how to deal with an alcoholic, or how to help an alcoholic. Self-help organizations, church groups, and 12-step programs like Al-Anon and Alateen offer advice, hope and encouragement to people involved with functioning alcoholics. Even though they may want to stop, many functioning alcoholics often won’t know where or how to begin the process. This is where family, friends and medical professionals can work together to create a plan to help end this cycle before they do more harm to themselves. People can have a varied reaction and tolerance to alcohol and that doesn’t necessarily mean they are alcoholics.

The best cure for codependency is a strong, healthy sense of self. Individual therapy, combined with marriage or family counseling, can strengthen your self-esteem and help you build a healthy, sober relationship. Liver damage is the most talked about physical consequence and that is a concern almost immediately. Alcoholics can go on to develop heart, respiratory and gastrointestinal disorders.

How to Recognize a Functional Alcoholic

While cirrhosis scars from excessive drinking are irreversible, quitting alcohol and leading a healthier lifestyle can help your liver heal from alcohol-related liver disease. When you’re living with a high functioning alcoholic, your own health is at stake as well as the welfare of your loved one. By getting help for your loved one, you may be able to avoid further consequences of alcoholism and build a healthier future for your family. Nearly 20% of alcoholics are highly functional and well-educated with good incomes. A functional alcoholic often consumes as much alcohol as someone with an alcohol use disorder.

It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare providers. Functional alcoholics are often in deep denial about their problem. After all, they have managed to maintain the appearance of success despite their addiction. But most high-functioning alcoholics have friends or loved ones who help them cover up the consequences of their drinking. These individuals may unconsciously encourage or enable the alcoholic’s behavior by allowing the alcoholic to avoid the negative consequences of destructive drinking. Functional alcoholics are often intelligent, hardworking and well-educated.

Getting Help As a Functional Alcoholic

Your doctor may also conduct imaging tests if other laboratory studies come back abnormal. For example, a computed tomography (CT) scan tests for liver enlargement, which can occur after years of chronic drinking. Your doctor may order this test if your blood tests indicate abnormal liver functioning. There is research showing that about 19.5 percent of people with AUD are middle-aged, well-educated, and have stable jobs, homes, and families. This could include people with high-functioning AUD, but these criteria are not definitive characteristics.

Chronic heavy drinkers can display a functional tolerance to the point they show few obvious signs of intoxication even at high blood alcohol concentrations, which in others would be incapacitating. In “case management,” a professional may work with you one-on-one. Outpatient programs make it possible for you to get treatment during the day and still live at home. Since people with high-functioning AUD can be on the milder spectrum of the condition, the earlier treatment happens, the more it may be possible to avoid a progression.

While the term “alcoholic” was used in the past but is now viewed as outdated and stigmatizing. Today, healthcare professionals would say that a person has an alcohol use disorder (AUD). It can lead to liver disease, pancreatitis, some forms of cancer, brain damage, serious memory loss, and high blood pressure. It also makes someone more likely to die in a car wreck or from murder or suicide. And any alcohol abuse raises the odds of domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, and fetal alcohol syndrome.

I, too, struggled to see that I could be accomplished academically and then professionally while drinking alcoholically. My image of the alcoholic was always an individual who could not hold his or her life together, and I certainly did not fit that description. My denial was deeply rooted and was reinforced not only by my loved ones but by society as a whole. If the consequences of high-functioning alcoholism have become overwhelming, and your loved one refuses to seek help for alcohol abuse, it could be time to plan an intervention. An intervention is a planned meeting in which the concerned parties confront the alcoholic about their behavior.

Their professional status or personal success can make it hard to approach them about having a “problem” with alcohol. Although you may still hear people talking about “alcoholism” or “alcohol abuse,” the official term is alcohol use disorder (AUD). And it’s all still problem drinking, even if you think it’s “mild.” If AUD goes unrecognized and untreated, it’s linked to risks in many aspects of your health and life. Whether you have an alcoholic spouse, partner or other loved one, you may be wondering how to help.